Undefeated streak continues

The Engineers had a victorious weekend, with both swimming and diving teams winning against Vassar College and Hartwick College.

The women’s teams for Vassar and Rensselaer went into the meet undefeated, but only RPI improved their perfect record to 5-0 as they beat the Brewers 185-70. The men’s team improved to 3-1, with a meet score of 184-92.

Notably, RPI won all four relays and all four diving events. RPI saw especially impressive victories in the 400-yard freestyle relays, with the men’s and women’s teams touching in 17 and 10 seconds ahead of Vassar, respectively.

On Sunday against Hartwick, the women’s team maintained their undefeated streak with a record of 6-0, while the men also improved to 4-1. The women won 14 of their 16 races, with eight different women winning in individual events.

Diving saw strong performances, with Jessica Kugelman ’20 winning from both diving boards in both meets. For the men’s team, Alex Chused ’19 won from the one-meter, and Jesse Rotering ’21 won from the three-meter against Vassar. The following day, the two divers flipped positions, with Chused winning from the three-meter and Rotering winning from the one-meter. Weston Brousseau ’21 and Rotering also achieved personal bests.

The Liberty League announced its performers for the week of November 7, in which Timothy Ho ’21 was named “Rookie of the Week,” and Danielle Sauve ’18 was named “Swimmer of the Week.” This weekend, Sauve won six individual events and a relay, and achieved season-bests in the 100 breast and the 200 individual medley. Kugelman was also named “Diver of the Week” for the third time in her career.

Trevor Maxfield ’20 was recognized on the “Honor Roll” after he won the 200 freestyle by almost six seconds, the 500 free by more than 16 seconds, the 1000 free by almost 25 seconds, and the 500 free by almost 10 seconds over the two days. He won four of his five events.

Diving Coach Maria Coomaraswamy-Falkenstein expressed that the back-to-back meets are tough. However, she elaborated that they also serve as a “great training tool” as the “qualifying process for the [National Collegiate Athletic Association Championships] requires peak performances in back-to-back meets. Doing this so early in the season is a great way to prepare.”

“We had a great weekend and, so far, have had a really good start to the season. I think, as a team right now, we are a very cohesive unit. The freshman class has brought a lot of energy and excitement to the team. They have also meshed very well with all the returners, and that shows in our results in the pool,” shared Head Coach Shannon O’Brien.